II. The Shift in Perception, P 3
3 What is the single requisite for this shift in perception? It is simply this; the recognition that sickness is of the mind, and has nothing to do with the body. What does this recognition “cost”? It costs the whole world you see, for the world will never again appear to rule the mind. For with this recognition is responsibility placed where it belongs; not with the world, but on him who looks on the world and sees it as it is not. He looks on what he chooses to see. No more and no less. The world does nothing to him. He only thought it did. Nor does he do anything to the world, because he was mistaken about what it is. Herein is the release from guilt and sickness both, for they are one. Yet to accept this release, the insignificance of the body must be an acceptable idea.
Journal
It is very clear by now that sickness is not caused by the body nor anything in the world; it is caused by the mind. As Jesus says, it has nothing to do with the body. This alone is a complete reversal of the thinking of the mind. It seems to fly in the face of reason because we experience sickness as if it is about the body. But it only flies in the face of ego thinking which made the body and the world as a place to project our guilt.
Guilt is the cause of sickness. Did you catch that? “Herein is the release from guilt and sickness both, for they are one.” If we would be willing to give up guilt, the very idea of guilt, once and for all, then this would be reflected as a perfectly healthy body. For us to do this we would have to accept that the body is insignificant. This is very hard to swallow if you still believe that you are your body. For some people who have a very high regard for their body, it will be very hard indeed.
The greater cost of accepting this shift in perception is that it would mean that we would have to accept that we are fully responsible for the world. We would have to give up using the world as a scapegoat for what goes wrong in our lives. We could never again say that we got sick because we were exposed to sickness or that we have a disease because it was in our DNA.
But more than that, we would not be able to blame anything or anyone for whatever is happening in the world. All begins in the mind and is then projected outward and we are all part of that mind. I am usually pretty clear on this, but I have been conflicted about it lately, not in concept, but in practice.
President Trump has said something I find intolerable, and truly, I want to distance myself from him. I want to think that his sentiments and the effects of his thoughts have nothing to do with me. But his thoughts came from the same mind that is mine. He came from the same mind we all share, as did I. I have been agitated and it seems like Donald Trump is the cause of my agitation.
This cannot ever again be true for me because I know that the world does not rule my mind. I pretend it does for awhile, but I know better now. I look at the world and see what I want to see. I see what is in my mind and only that. Is guilt in my mind? Evidently, it is because I have been certain that Trump is guilty. Is fear in my mind? Must be, because I fear for the people affected by Trump’s vision of our country.
I am seeing a world of guilt and fear and the political arena is just a form my fear and guilt are taking at this moment. What do some other people see when they look at this situation? They see a savior and a defender of the lifestyle they treasure and are afraid of losing. They see a hero willing to defend them from fearful outside forces. In other words, we look at the world and see two very different things happening.
Their fear and guilt take them in one direction, and my fear and guilt take me in another. But, neither vision is the truth. We are all just looking at what we choose to see and nothing else. We cannot see what is there because we have superimposed our wishes on the world and cannot see past them.
I am reminded of what Jesus says about unforgiveness in the workbook under, 1. What is Forgiveness? An unforgiving thought is one which makes a judgment that it will not raise to doubt, although it is not true. And if I have judged a Son of God as guilty, it is not true and needs to be raised to doubt. What if I were to forgive what my fear and guilt have shown me and to forgive the idea of guilt and fear? What would the world look like then? What would Donald Trump look like then?
Even as I write this and know in my heart that it is true, that the world I see comes only from my mind and nowhere else, and that I can live in perfect peace if I am willing to change my mind, I find myself resistant. I find myself clinging to my ego’s interpretation of this situation and I want Trump to be wrong and the cause of my distress. I want to argue for my point of view and to believe that his thoughts and actions have nothing to do with me.
But I also want to be free. I owe it to us, to the Sonship, to do my part in undoing the ego. After all, I am not alone in experiencing the effects of my seeing or my thoughts. I affect all of humanity with my decision to see with ego or to see with God. Here is what Jesus say that I can do about this.
Do nothing, then, and let forgiveness show you what to do, through Him Who is your Guide, your Savior and Protector, strong in hope, and certain of your ultimate success. He has forgiven you already, for such is His function, given Him by God. Now must you share His function, and forgive whom He has saved, whose sinlessness He sees, and whom He honors as the Son of God.
© Copyright 2018, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
You may freely share copies of this with your friends, provided this notice is included.
Has this page been helpful to you?
Your contribution in support of this site is greatly appreciated. To make a tax deductible contribution or become a member online, go to http://www.pathwaysoflight.org/polshop/home.php?cat=254.
Or send a check or money order to Pathways of Light, 6 Oak Court, Ormond Beach, FL 32174-2623 (USD only, please) Thank you for your support.